Student Initiatives
The students of the University of Mannheim have a significant impact on the university. They pursue various voluntary activities in addition to their studies. The students expand their horizons and show a surprisingly diverse and especially social commitment in numerous initiatives, encouraging others to do the same. The University of Mannheim is aware of how valuable this commitment is and has implemented accreditation guidelines to create a good framework for it. Freunde der Universität Mannheim also appreciate the students' desire to help shape their environment and have supported numerous student initiatives for years within their means.
Credit: Julia Selena Beck
Afya
According to the UN World Food Programme, 9 million people die from starvation every year. This is about one death every three seconds. The social startup Afya of the Mannheim student initiative Enactus fights this issue in Uganda – with the help of the alga spirulina. It contains more protein than meat and takes up only two percent of the cultivated area.
With financial support from “Freunde der Universität Mannheim”, Enactus members completed the first breeding facility and established business contacts with local schools and pharmacies. The alga is to be added to meals, especially in schools, to prevent malnutrition. Just 3 grams of the super algae per day are enough to sustainably free a child from malnutrition, as it not only contains proteins, but also important amino acids and more than 10 different vitamins.
Credit: Julia Selena Beck
ReSoil
In equatorial countries like Uganda, extreme weather conditions and mismanagement lead to eroded and barren soils. Each year, progressive soil erosion results in an 8 percent crop loss. This poses a threat to the livelihoods of smallholder farmers. The ReSoil project of the Mannheim student initiative Enactus addresses the root of the problem. Modeled after the millennia-old Terra Preta method, ReSoil created a black soil that can restore long-term fertility to degraded farmland. Together with local partner Gudie Leisure Farm, Enactus Mannheim has established a central ReSoil production facility in Uganda. The soil is sold in a ReSoil store in the heart of Kampala. Since April 2019, the ReSoil project has been extended to Zambia. In cooperation with the “Don Bosco Community”, 16 tons of ReSoil have already been produced there and brought to market.
“Freunde der Universität Mannheim” supported the project not only financially, but also with their know-how.
Credit: Annabel Mempel
MUN Mannheim e.V.
Every year, WorldMUN (World Model United Nations) brings together talented and motivated students from over 100 countries who are united by the goal of addressing international political issues at an academic level and taking responsibility for the future of their generation. At WorldMUN, students represent the political stance of a country assigned to them in a United Nations committee. They try to secure a majority to support their country's political agenda in debates and negotiations and to adopt their solutions in the form of a resolution at the end of the conference.
Thanks to the financial support of “Freunde der Universität Mannheim”, 20 members of MUN Mannheim were able to attend Harvard WorldMUN 2019 in Madrid. In addition, “Freunde der Universität Mannheim” facilitated the realization of a workshop weekend in preparation for the WorldMUN conference.
“An academic education is critical for a sustainable and successful development of business companies in which we have a lot of responsibility. We always need individuals with this qualification! The University of Mannheim contributes significantly to this, that is why I am happy to support it.”
